Summary

Description

In order to test hypotheses about groundwater flow under and into Chesapeake Bay, geophysical surveys were conducted by U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists on Chesapeake Bay and the Potomac River Estuary in September 2006. Chesapeake Bay resource managers are concerned about nutrients that are entering the estuary via submarine groundwater discharge, which are contributing to eutrophication. The USGS has performed many related studies in recent years to provide managers with information necessary to make informed decisions about this issue. The research carried out as part of the study described here was designed to help refine nutrient budgets for Chesapeake Bay by characterizing submarine groundwater flow and discharge of groundwater beneath part of the mainstem and a major tributary, the Potomac River Estuary.